Friday, February 09, 2007

CD/DVD press review: Madonna has more than secrets to share

Late last June, Madonna slid out a relatively unheralded (for her) but impressive live CD/DVDcombo,I'm Going To Tell You A Secret. The release featured strong performances captured from her 2004Re-Invention Tour, which was staged to promote her 2003 CDAmerican Life. The Jonas Akerlund-directed DVD also documented her process of putting the show together, with side looks at her personal life - a la 1991'sTruth or Dare. The main thing wrong with I'm Going To Tell You A Secretwas its timing: When it came out, Madonna had already embarked on her next tour to promote her 2005 releaseConfessions On A Dance Floor- a considerably better collection of songs than whatAmerican Lifehad to offer. And last year's tour proved to be the all-time top-grossing tour by a female artist. So now out comes The Confessions Tour, a live CD/DVD combo that fills in the blanks left open byI'm Going To Tell You A Secret. The Akerlund-directed two-hour DVD catches Madonna performing at London's Wembley Arena last August, a vivid spectacle that found her riding a saddle, playing guitar (albeit rhythm guitar), running around like a deranged runway model and holding court over dancers behaving like horses. The show is keyed to movement - featuring everything from parkour performers to dancers on roller skates - complicated visual effects, dramatic mood shifts to accompany costume changes, and such displays as a giant, mirrored cross from which Madonna hangs to singLive To Tell, a sight NBC refused to broadcast last fall when the network aired her concert. There's so much going on that it's easy to miss the best part of the show: Madonna delivering fine live vocals to some of the greatest songs of her career. That's why the CD is handy, blocking out the DVD's distracting images so fans can concentrate on the music at the heart of Madonna's success. Although the CD is an edited-down version of the DVD, both include a few well-recast oldies (Like A Virgin, Erotica, Music) but mostly feature her brilliant new dance songs, including the surrealFuture Lovers(fused here with a rendition of "I Feel Love"), a pumped-up Jumpand the bouncy Sorry. Bothdiscs build in intensity to the show's finale, a propulsive version ofHung Up. London went wild. (source:Knoxnews)

About Me

Blog Archive

You know I feel it in my heartbeat It may feel old to you, but to me it feels new You know I feel it in my heartbeat Don't you know, can't you see When I dance, I feel free Which makes me feel like the only one (The only one) That the light shines on